


Driven to Distraction

by MyParamour



Series: Ad Astra Per Aspera [1]
Category: Choices - Fandom, Choices: Open Heart, Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:07:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28474425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyParamour/pseuds/MyParamour
Summary: After months of frustration, MC decides to tempt Ethan Ramsey into acting on his desires
Relationships: Ethan Ramsey/Main Character (Open Heart)
Series: Ad Astra Per Aspera [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2085618
Kudos: 27





	Driven to Distraction

It had been three long months since he'd walked into the bar that night. Three arduous months since she'd asked him, "why did you leave me?" and his response to her pained question had been, "because your professional future means more."

She'd let it go at the time. Her disappointment had allowed him to get away with saying the words that he'd already spoken to her once before; upon hearing them the second time she still couldn't agree. But the blush in her cheeks from embarrassment had spurred her onward, and she'd left that night rather than arguing in vain.

After all, Ethan Ramsey was a hard man to win a disagreement against.

But in those three months she'd had to work closely with him on the diagnostic team, and she was the first to admit that some days it was harder than others to push aside the feelings that she had for him. Initially, she had hoped that, despite their close proximity, that if she put her head down and focused on doing the best job possible, she could shove her care for him down so far that it would eventually subside; but after a short period of time she realized that was a pointless endeavour. The man was so annoyingly handsome and charismatic, one look across the table at him while he passionately discussed the symptoms of a new patient and she was back to picturing the way that he looked when he first woke up in the morning, the feel of his back muscles against her hands when she'd cling to him for purchase, the face that he made when she'd go down on---

_Stop it._

She tried her best to pretend that there was nothing more than a professional relationship between them, and hell, sometimes she'd even do a top shelf job of fooling even herself, but then he'd waltz into their meeting room, a gourmet coffee in his hand and a crisp suit expertly tailored to his body, and the stony facade she'd managed to construct around herself would instantly crumble. If anyone so much as mentioned Dr. Ramsey her eyes would dart in their direction, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. She'd suspected that June Hirata was suspicious of their past transgressions, and her assumptions were all but confirmed a few weeks prior.

"...I'm aware that you two have a history together."

She hadn't said anything in response, but she was certain that the look on her face gave June the answer she was expecting; that particular answer providing even more fuel for her to hide her feelings behind. She felt she was failing miserably on that score today, however.

"Um, hellooooo, paging Dr. Palermo?"

She looked up from her papers and towards Dr. Hirata, "hmm? Sorry, I had my head in the clouds. What were you saying?"

"Just that now you've secured the Senator as a patient, you should be ready to be hounded by journalists."

She frowned, "really? Why would they want to speak to me?" Her hand reached for the necklace that fell between her breasts, and she ran her fingers over the chain. Ethan cleared his throat, and when she looked toward him she noticed his eyes dart from her fingers to her face. Oh, she liked that. "He mentioned you by name, the press will be eager to learn more about the "great Dr. Palermo.""

She let out a laugh and placed her elbows onto the table, leaning forward, "you'd think they'd wait to see whether or not I'm able to figure out what's wrong with him first. For all they know I have no idea what I'm doing." She allowed herself to smirk in Ethan's direction, and she managed to catch the almost imperceptible twitch in his lips, just barely revealing a small bit of the man that he'd been with her in private.

"You do." He'd said it casually, so much so that neither Baz nor June seemed to pick up on the tinge of fondness he'd allowed in the tonality of his response -- but she'd caught it, and even this tiny morsel of intimacy caused warmth to stir in her belly. She again ran her fingers along her necklace before dropping it back down against her skin, forcing herself to hold his gaze, wanting to know if the movement would once more draw his attention.

It did. And _that_ piqued her interest.

* * *

She'd agonized over what to wear to work the following week. Initially, she hadn't taken June's warnings seriously, but upon being ambushed by the press immediately after arrival to the hospital the next day, she'd quickly changed her tune. Every day since then, she'd tried to strike a balance between looking professional and looking attractive. She hadn't relished in the fact that she'd been caught off guard, and the first time the cameras were shoved in her face happened to be on the same day she'd agreed to meet the boys for a workout before her shift -- her face was bare of makeup, her hair thrown up into a messy bun, and her outfit far from what she'd want her patients to see her in. 

Bryce had tried to comfort her when she lamented to him, but his opinion on her appearance wasn't the one that she'd wanted. Regardless, feeling the need to gussy up for work had caused a small perk that she hadn't intended: Dr. Ramsey had taken note, and a plan had formulated in her mind because of it.

She shouldn't, and she _knew_ that she shouldn't considering Ethan had been adamant in his misgivings about their personal relationship, but she couldn't resist taking the opportunity to tempt him whenever possible. She revelled in it any time she could do something that would cause the stern, no-nonsense Ethan Ramsey to buckle, even slightly. 

During one of their diagnostic team meetings, she'd purposefully left the top few buttons of her blouse undone, and when she reached for a chart from the centre of the table, she made certain that Ethan received an eye full. She hadn't locked eyes with him that time for fear that her intentions would be obvious to the others in the room, but by the way that he kept his gaze anywhere but her afterwards, even when he was speaking directly to her, she'd known he'd seen it.

Another was while he was doing his rounds - they happened to have patients along the same corridor and they'd met in the middle. She pretended that she needed a pen to make a note so she snatched his out of his pocket. "Do you mind?"

"Do I mind wha--?"

She'd stepped closer and grabbed it before he could finish his question. She proceeded to write down what was essentially a tiny doodle in the corner, but he couldn't see that. Then, she bit her bottom lip and pretended to think intently about it. "Hm."

When she gazed back up at him his eyes were unmistakably trained on her mouth so she darted her tongue out to wet her lips. She wasn't certain, but she thought that she heard him swallow a groan at that before he seemed to realize that she was looking at him. 

"You alright?"

He nodded. "Of course."

"Good." She slid his pen back into his pocket before tapping the fabric. "Thank you, _Dr. Ramsey._ "

She had tried to be subtle at first, but teasing the man that she'd pined for for over a year was just too tempting. So today, today she had decided to be more overt. When she'd stepped into the tight pencil skirt she'd wondered if maybe this was verging on inappropriate for work. After all, it had a slit that didn't stop until mid-thigh, but once she put on her white coat she saw that it was clearly hidden underneath, and she decided to take the gamble.

She'd made her move once again during their diagnostic meeting that morning. They were brainstorming what further tests to run on the Senator to try and find a diagnosis, and Baz was in the middle of making a suggestion when she leaned back in her chair, the side of her coat slipping onto the seat and revealing the streak of thigh. As if he'd already known what she was about to do, Ethan was looking in her direction from where he stood near the whiteboard -- her legs in clear view of him. She dared to meet his gaze as she responded to Baz's theory, and she crossed her left leg over her right, causing the slit to reveal more of her leg while she did so.

There was no denying it then. She had driven him to distraction as was evident by Ethan not responding when Baz asked him what his thoughts were.

"...Dr. Ramsey?"

Ethan jerked his head to the right, "what? Sorry, I --" He swallowed. "Whatever you think, Dr. Mirani."

Baz furrowed his brows at Ethan's response and looked to her, an unspoken question on his face. She shrugged, pretending that she didn't know what was up with him, but inwardly she was thrilled at the result of her experiment. Despite her findings, however, she scurried off once their meeting was adjourned, eager to avoid any potential confrontation with Ethan. She knew that inevitably he would have to reiterate to her that there was no "them," and she didn't want to hear it yet. She enjoyed the game she was playing, even if it wouldn't lead to anything more than what it already had.

The rest of her day flew by - which always seemed surprising for a 12 hour shift, and she'd just completed her final rounds when she received a page to head to the diagnostics meeting room. Her pulse immediately quickened, and she worried that she was about to be admonished for what was, she knew, unprofessional behaviour.

She took her time making her way up to the fourth floor, and when she reached her destination she tentatively knocked. "Dr. Ramsey?"

She watched as he looked up from his seat at the table and motioned for her to come inside. "Close the door behind you."

She obliged, and leaned against the door once it was shut. She paused, wondering just how much trouble she'd be in, before deciding to speak first. "If this is about earlier then I'm sor--"

"It is. About earlier, I mean." He stared at her, as if waiting for her to do something before he nodded towards her usual seat. "Are you just going to stand at the door or...?"

"Oh. No, sorry." Her heels clicked across the floor before she sat down, wrapping her arms around herself for comfort. "Look, Dr. Ramsey--"

"You're being awfully formal for someone who's made it her mission to tempt me."

She felt the redness come to her cheeks and she looked downward, "I'm sorry."

He raised his brows and stood, walking around the table before resting against it in front of her. "Are you? Because if I were a betting man I'd wager that you're not _that_ sorry, Aurelia."

It was embarrassing, really, how quickly he could arouse her. He so rarely called her by her first name at work and all it took was for him to say it once before she felt herself becoming wet. She sucked in a breath, and tried her hand at appearing confident. "And if I wasn't?"

He crossed his arms, "...you know how I feel about this."

She sighed and scooted her chair back far enough to have enough space to stand, "I know, Ethan, and _you_ know that I disagree. But I was just being stupid. I won't do it again." She quickly turned and headed toward the door and just as she reached the handle his arm slammed against it.

"Wait!"

His chest was pressed against her back as he stopped her from leaving. Heat radiated from his body into hers and she shut her eyes at the feeling. She hadn't been this close to him since the night he told her he would be leaving for two months, and they'd had one last night of their bodies being intertwined before he'd left her apartment the next morning. 

The closeness of him made her suddenly wish she hadn't gone ahead with her plan in the first place. Having to work with him and see him every day while toying with her memories was hard enough, but to have him against her like this made their predicament provoke even more suffering. 

His hand slid from the door and into her hair, brushing it away from her shoulders. "I can tell you all of the reasons why I don't think this is a good idea, but that doesn't mean I haven't ached for you for the past five months."

She groaned before righting herself and turning around, "Ethan, don't." She reached her hand out and grabbed the collar of his shirt, "look, I shouldn't have tried to tempt you, but you're the one who put an end to this in the first place. You're the one who left the fucking continent just to get away from me; from _this_." She pointed between the two of them. "It's not fair for you to -- to..."

She sighed. She felt pathetic really. She'd wanted to go on and really let him have it. His leaving had really hurt her, and while she knew his reasons for wanting to keep her at an arm's length were noble, he had gone about it in a really fucking idiotic manner. But in the midst of her speaking she'd been stupid enough to look up at him, and she'd seen him staring back down at her. His eyes brightly blue behind his glasses, and his face pulled into a forlorn expression that she'd never seen on him. Her anger instantly subsided, and it was replaced with the pent-up yearning to have him inside of her.

"Ethan."

His hands made their way into her hair; she remembered that he'd commented once that it smelled good, and she'd purposefully repurchased that same shampoo and conditioner since then, pitifully hoping that he'd notice. She thought he might have-- not much slipped passed him.

His hands settled to cup her face. "I know. I deserve more wrath than that."

She pulled on his collar, "you do... but that also hasn't stopped me from wanting you every time I see you. Or from wanting you each time I'm alone in bed."

He swallowed, letting his hips knock against hers, and an audible gasp left her lips. She wanted him so badly, and she was swiftly approaching a scenario where she couldn't leave without having him.

She reached up and gently grabbed the sides of his frames, carefully pulling them away from his face and placing them on the windowsill beside her. She then reached for his white coat, and moved to push it off of his shoulders. He let go of her, allowing the fabric to slip from his arms before it fell to the floor. She reached for her own jacket next, and let it join with his.

He was holding on to a thread of hesitation, she could see, and she let herself conclude that the best course of action would be to pull on it.

"You're worried about people finding out about us, I know." She slid her hands down his stomach and grabbed his belt, digging her fingers into the top of his pants, inching him closer. "...But I won't tell if you don't."

He was still for a beat and suddenly he was on her -- his left hand snaked tightly around her waist and his other grabbed onto the back of her neck, pulling her mouth to his. Her arms draped around him, not wanting to let him break their kiss. She'd been waiting for this moment for five months, there was no chance in hell she would let this slip by her. But she needed _more_.

She slid her thigh against his, and with more dexterity than she remembered, he quickly reached down and hoisted her up, silently instructing her to wrap her legs around his hips. Her back hit the door as he gripped her, and she let out a laugh against his skin. She felt him smile before he turned and took the few steps towards the table, placing her down on the edge.

"Aurelia."

His hands found their way to her legs, and he slid his right hand up, along the slit of her skirt, his delicate touch sending a shiver down her spine. He licked his lips and looked down at her, "I could reprimand you, you know. For tormenting me in front of our colleagues." His hands pushed up on the fabric, revealing more of her thighs to him. "You made me hard this morning." His hand slipped underneath the garment and inched towards her. "I could hardly think of anything else all day."

She adored the thought that her simple act could throw off the consummate professional that he was. But her self-congratulatory thoughts were disrupted by his fingers rubbing her over her underwear. She knew he could instantly tell how wet she was for him. "...Are you going to punish me, Dr. Ramsey?"

He pushed her hair from her neck before he leaned down and pressed a kiss underneath her ear. He whispered, "later. Right now I just need to be in you."

Her hands trembled as she fumbled with the buckle of his belt, her anticipation throwing her off momentarily. When she managed to undo it she wasted no time in unzipping his pants and pushing them and his underwear down far enough to reveal him to her. On instinct her hand gripped him, and she pumped him slowly from base to tip.

He closed his eyes as she continued her ministrations, and she looked up to watch his adam's apple bob up and down as he let his mouth fall open. "Fuck." She smirked. He used profanity so rarely, she felt a small ping of gratification at breaking him down.

She ran her thumb over the tip and that seemed to pull him back to her. 

"Sit back."

She complied, and raised her hips as he pushed her skirt fully out of the way. He crouched down and reached for her thong, hooking his fingers into the sides before slowly pulling it down her legs and off of her feet. He took one look at her heels before darting his eyes back to her, "leave those on."

He pushed her legs open as she leaned back onto her elbows. He stood and jerked himself once, twice, three times before lining his cock up with her opening. He grabbed her thighs as he _slowly_ slid inside and the feel of him finally breaching her after so long was invigorating. "God, Ethan."

She sat upright and reached for him, holding onto his arms as he pulled back and _slammed_ into her. "Oh!" She'd had nothing but her own fingers or vibrator to get her off since they'd last been together, and the feeling of him filling her was _so_ much better than being alone.

Neither of them were in the mood for pleasantries. They'd waited too long to come together again and their pace was fervent. The table creaked beneath their movements and in the back of her mind she wondered how much it could take from them -- she was more than willing to test it.

His hand reached for her blouse, and not wanting to deal with the delicacies of unbuttoning it, he _yanked_ on it and two of the buttons popped off and fell onto the floor, revealing her bra to him. She staggered out a laugh as he thrust against her, "Ethan you'll -- you'll owe me for that."

He kissed along her jaw and towards her mouth, nipping on her bottom lip as he reached it. "I don't care."

His hand slipped beneath the lace and he pinched her nipple in between his fingers. Everything felt so. fucking. good. She couldn't help but let out a loud groan. His hand quickly shifted from her breast and flew over her mouth. "Shh. You wouldn't want someone to find us."

 _I absolutely would_ , she thought, but his hand prevented her from voicing her opinion. He slid his fingers and cupped her jaw, running his thumb over her mouth. She took her chance and wrapped her lips around it, sucking on his digit. She watched with rapt attention as his eyes widened and her action caused him to stumble momentarily on his thrusts. 

She shifted and gripped the edge of the table to hold herself steady. The new angle made him hit _just_ the right spot inside of her and Ethan seemed to feel it too. He tightly grabbed onto her hips and pounded into her with such vigor that she struggled to keep herself upright. 

She wanted to say more - wanted to tell him how good he felt but her mind couldn't seem to string two words together; it was far too focused on the heat pooling within her. Despite the onslaught she risked letting go with one of her hands, and she reached for her clit, biting her lip at the added pleasure.

He noticed her movement, and he looked down between them. "Jesus, Aurelia. Look at you."

The room was silent beyond their stifled gasps and moans, and the steady creaking of the wood beneath them. 

"Ethan, I--"

Her mouth fell open as she slipped off the precipice, and his rhythm faltered as she clenched around him. He fucked her through her orgasm, and she hooked her feet together behind his hips as he chased his own.

She felt sweaty and hot as she held on tight, running her nails down his back, the feel of the fabric slightly damp beneath her skin. "Ethan."

He jerked and gasped against her ear as he reached his release, and he stilled as she felt him convulse inside of her. They stayed there, holding each other as they came down from their high, breathing heavily between them. 

Ethan was the first to pull back, and he smiled down at her, without a trace of regret behind it. Aurelia tilted her head up, silently asking for a kiss, and she was delighted when he fulfilled her request.

A noise seeped into the room from the hall, and the two of them came back down to earth, rushing to redress before anyone had a chance to interrupt them. She'd pocketed her lost buttons into her jacket pocket and she was smoothing out her skirt when she felt him come up from behind her and he pulled her into his chest. 

"...I'm sorry I left how I did."

She reached back and blindly touched her hand to his cheek, "I know you are." She turned around in his grasp and looked up at him. "Don't do that again, please. I don't think I could take it. It's been so hard to be near you without being able to do this." She wrapped her arms around his torso and held him close, resting her head underneath his chin. "I've missed you so much."

She felt him place a kiss to the top of her head as she snuggled into him. "I've missed you too... more than you know."


End file.
